CLS Reach | Fall 2010

reachn e w s l e t t e r

Center for Leadership and Service

F A L L 1 0

contentsFeature Story05 Florida Alternative Breaks

CLS News & Updates02 CLS News & Updates

After School GatorsACTIONS!Gator Non-Pro�t ProfessionalsGator Teen Mentors

03 CLS News & UpdatesLead 101Women’s Leadership CouncilProject Mascot

CLS Spotlight04 Meet Our CLS VISTA

Angela Garcia

reach 01

05F A L L 1 0

A

B

FAB member, Jessica Lights, volun-teers at the Florida Humane Animal Shelter on fer 2009 Spring trip.

A. WLC members with Student Body President Ashton CharlesB. University of Florida students Sam Hart, right, and James Joseph join other volunteers incleaning up at Wilmot Gardens on campus as part of their Gator Plunge service day.

A

02 reach

NEWS &UPDATESCLS

After School Gators Spring RecruitmentAfter School Gators is looking for students interested in volunteering for 2 hours per week with at risk elementary school students in Alachua County. It is not too late to volunteer. Have some “me” time during the holiday season and contact [email protected] for more information on how to help some-one else in the spring semester.

ACTIONS! Gator PlungeSEPTEMBER 18, 2010

About 400 students showed up at UF on an early Saturday morning to dust, vacuum, sweep, entertain, organize, etc as part of Gator Plunge, a half-day service project in which students volunteer throughout the city of Gaines-ville.

This is the ACTIONS! fall kicko� event that is used to motivate students to participate in various volunteer opportunities around campus. Students met at the Plaza of the Americas and were divided into groups that would work with several organizations throughout Gainesville. Organizations included Children’s Home Society, Gainesville Harvest, Gainesville Junior Woman's Club, Arbor House, Haven Hospice, Glen Springs Elementary, the Alachua County Humane Society, Habitat for Humanity, START! Heart Walk, Clare Bridge Assisted Living and St. Francis House.

Gator Non-Pro�t Professionals Public Service PanelNOVEMBER 10, 2010

Students interested in the non-pro�t sector crowed the J. Wayne Reitz Union to speak with representatives from Teach for America, City Year, Peace Corps and AmeriCorps. The reps answered questions from the audience about their organizations and spoke about their experiences. If exit surveys provide any indication, this event will de�nitely be held again.

Gator Teens Mentors Barnes and Noble FundraiserNOVEMBER 10, 2010

Gator Teens is holding its �rst fundraiser at Barnes and Noble on December 10th from 11am-3pm. We will be wrapping gifts for monetary donations. Donations will be used to pay for educational trips that mentors can take with their mentees

11am-3pm | Barnes & Noble on Archer Road

reach 03

SAVE THE DATE

Lead101 Art of LeadershipNOVEMBER 14, 2010

Breaking News! The Art of Leadership Conference and Gator Institute for Leadership Development merged to take over the J. Wayne Reitz Union during the major Art of Leadership conference. This half day conference was designed to educate, develop, and inspire strong leaders. Topics focused on developing organizational skills, interpersonal skills to servant leadership and discovering your passion.

Leadership Week 101 Be sure to look out a week of fun leadership development during for Leadership Week 101 in February, 2011. Contact Leandria Vickers at Lvickers08@u�.edu for more information.

Women’s Leadership Council Women’s Welcome ReceptionSEPTEMBER 9, 2010

The Women’s Welcome Reception was born out of the need to o�er an infor-mative event to new students at UF who wanted to learn more about oppor-tunities for leadership and community for women at UF.

The current Student Body President and only fourth female to hold this o�ce, Ashton Charles, was the keynote speaker and inspired students to never give up their dedication to leadership and to utilize the resources available to them. Female-focused groups on campus were present to introduce them-selves and help students get involved. Students had the opportunity to inter-act and network with female student leaders on campus and learn about valuable resources available to them.

Project Mascot Taco Dinner FiestaNOVEMBER 18, 2010

UF Christian Campus House was �lled with Sombreros and amigos at Project MASCOT’s annual Taco Dinner. There was great food, music, ra�es, and even a salsa cook o�. The purpose of fundraiser: To send 4th grade students at Williams Elementary School to Sea World during Spring, 2011.

80 members + 20 fundraiser volunteers + 200 UF students support = Over $1,600 raised

CLSSPOTLIGHT

04 reach

meet our cls

Hometown: Gainesville, FloridaFavorite Food: Anything but Bar-B-QueFavorite Color: YellowFavorite Service Cause: Women’s Issues and HIV/AidsFavorite Hobby: Anything Outdoors

What is a VISTA?A VISTA is a volunteer in service to America who comes to do a year of service full time to help with poverty alleviation.

Where did you work in college?I worked at the Career Resource Center where I was the only student to be a career advisor.

What organizations do you work with in the CLS?Motiv8, Gator Teens, After School Gators and Project Mascot

What role do you play in these mentoring organizations?I advise the mentors. Most recently I have helped these organizations establish their executive boards.

What has been your favorite experience while working with the CLS?I’ve enjoyed getting to know the students and helping give them direction.

What is an experience you are anticipating?I can’t wait for the Project Mascot trip to Sea World. It will be great to see the mentees.

VISTAAngela Garcia is a Spring 2010 graduate of the University of Florida and the very �rst Ameri-Corps VISTA to work with the Center for Leadership and Service. The CLS A-Team took some time to have a quick Q&A with her so that everyone can become aware of who this relatively new face is.

Thirty-seven million Americans live in poverty. Through AmeriCorps VISTA, you can make a tangible di�erence like Angela is doing. For more information on the program, contact Angela at the CLS or AmeriCorps at 800-942-2677 or [email protected].

reach 05

________alternativesbreaksBesides Spring Break, Winter Break and MLK Weekend, FAB also sends out tripsat the end of the Summer C semester. There were three trips this year, Children's Healthcare, Animal Refuge, and Immigration. Overall, this was the most successful summer FAB has ever had! Congratulations to our six site leaders and everyone who participated!

FAB is de�ned by a direct service learning experience. From August 8th-15th, students on the Animal Refuge trip were in Pittsboro, NC volunteering at Carolina Tiger Rescue. Even after only one week, they were able to leave a lasting mark, helping Carolina Tiger Refuge better protect wild cats, and demonstrating a commitment to work towards change.

The Immigration trip volunteered with two amazing organizations, Refugee Family Services and Refugee Resettlement and Immigration Services of Atlanta. FAB has a history of working with migrant worker populations, but this put participants in contact with immigrants from all over the world.

Children's Healthcare volunteered with Give Kids the World Village in Kissimmee, FL, which invites children with life-threatening conditions and their families to come experience the magic of a theme park.

After being one of the site leaders for Children's Healthcare, Bryan Brown highly recommends Florida Alternative Break trips, “Bringing smiles to ill children and their hard working parents was amazing. Not only was I able to provide an awesome service, but I was able to bond with 11 other college students who also shared my same interest in making a di�erence in the lives of others.”

In addition, for the �rst time we had an Orientation for Summer trip partici-pants. The purpose of this event was to orient participants to FAB's vision: “To create active citizens through a commitment to community service, leadership and social change.”

It was held at Lake Wauberg, where everyone got to know each other through fun FAB activities and outdoor recreation. Summer trip participa-tion met again to receive post-trip reorientation on November 4th in the J. Wayne Reitz Union Grand Ballroom.

florida

by Lauren Musick

Fall 2010 TripsDecember 17th-23rd

• Criminal Justice

• Mental Health

• Health and Aging

• Homelessness & Poverty

Applications are still

being accepted for

Spring Break. Contact

Becky Rodriguez at

rrcrespo@u�.edu.

Application can be found

online at the CLS website.

”

Cen

ter f

or Leadership and Service

University of Florida 301 Peabody Hall, PO Box 114075, Gainesville, FL 32611Phone:(352) 392-1215; Fax: (352) 392-5566

For more information contact us at: leadershipandservice@u�.edu or visit: www.leadershipandservice.u�.edu

reachn e w s l e t t e r

Center for Leadership and Service